Kim Dotcom's Mega to branch out into encrypted email

Kim Dotcom, the enigmatic online entrepreneur facing charges over alleged mass copyright theft, has confirmed plans to offer an encrypted email service on his new Mega network.

In an interview with The Guardian over Skype from his home in New Zealand, Dotcom said that Mega has grown to 3m registered users since it launched in January 2013, and 125m files were stored in its first month in operation.

"It took [cloud storage firm] Dropbox two years to achieve that," said Dotcom, real name Kim Schmitz. "We can see really high demand for this storage."

He added: "We're going to extend this to secure email which is fully encrypted so that you won't have to worry that a government or internet service provider will be looking at your email."

No further details were supplied on the Mega email system or when it might launch.

Dotcom is currently fighting extradition from New Zealand to the US, where he faces criminal charges related to file-sharing website MegaUpload, which was shut down in January 2012 by US authorities, and Dotcom arrested in New Zealand.

His assets were seized at the time, and Dotcom told The Guardian that he has been unable to unfreeze them, meaning his legal team has not been paid for the past year.